Anarchism
Not Suitable
The following article was originally published as a letter by
Anton Pannekoek written to JA Dawson, the editor of the Australian
journal, Southern Advocate for Workers Councils. The article
appeared, under a title given by Dawson, in issue 42, February 1948.
This version is reprinted from Pannekoek and the Workers' Councils,
Serge Bricianer ed.
In the present times of increasing submission by the workers to
powerful state tyranny, it is natural that more sympathy is directed
toward anarchism, with its propaganda of freedom. Just as social
democracy, its opponent, it had its roots in 19th century capitalism.
One took its necessity from exploitation and capitalist competition,
the other from the entire enslaving and suppression of personality;
one found its force in the need for and propaganda of organization,
the other in the need for and propaganda of freedom. Since the former
was felt most immediately and overwhelmingly by the workers, social
democracy won the masses and anarchism could not compete with it. Now
rising under state capitalism it seems to have a better chance. But
we have to bear in mind that both in the same way carry the mark of
their origin out of the primitive conditions of the 19th century. The
principle of freedom, originating from bourgeois conditions of early
capitalism, freedom of trade and enterprise, is not adequate to the
working class. The problems or goals for the workers are to combine
freedom and organization. Anarchism, by setting up freedom as its
goal, forgets that the free society of workers can only exist by a
strong feeling of community as the prominent character of the
collaborating producers. This new character, coming forth as strong
solidarity in the workers' fights already is the basis of
organization- without compulsion from above. The self-made
organization by free collaborating workers is the basis at the same
time of their personal freedom, i.e., of their feeling as free
masters of their own work. Freedom as the chief content of anarchism
may awake strong sympathies now, but it is only a part, not even the
basic part, of the goal of the working class, which is expressed by
self-rule, self-determination, by means of council organization. It
seems, then, that in the present times there is in anarchism a
certain approach toward the idea of workers' councils, especially
where it involves groups of workers. But the old pure anarchist
doctrine is too narrow to be of value for the class struggle now
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